Weed Wanted

Friday, April 1, 2022

Your guide to the hottest hemp cannabinoids

All your questions on hemp cannabinoids, answered, plus huge deals up to 30% off and hot products from top brands.

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10 brillantes marcas Latinx en la industria del cannabis

La comunidad latina es una parte fundamental en el éxito de la industria del cannabis. Aquí hay algunas marcas de cannabis latina que brillan en 2022.

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The Roll-up #236: ‘High Design’ star Kim Myles fixes dispensary disasters

Emmy-winning designer Kim Myles talks about the do's and don'ts of dispensary design, and her new Discovery+ show "High Design."

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Politicians Supporting Cannabis and Putting ‘Fools’ in Their Place

Today is April Fool’s Day. While we could tell you some fake story about how weed has become federally legal, we’d prefer to go in a different direction. The cannabis industry has come such a long way, and rather than discuss the fools who are still pushing against cannabis, we’d rather celebrate those who continue to shine a light on the plant while calling it like it is, unrelenting in their efforts to expand access to cannabis across the board. Here are just a few political advocates who are shooting for change.

Gary Chambers, Running for Senate in Louisiana

Although Gary Chambers is not yet a member of the Senate, we’d be hard-pressed not to include him given his advocacy on the subject of cannabis, among other topics. He announced his candidacy in January this year with a video of himself smoking a blunt and talking about the harms caused by the War on Drugs. Most recently, he spoke at the Chamber of Cannabis in Las Vegas, Nevada on March 10 about the long-term imprisonment of Kevin O’Brien Allen for a cannabis conviction and his approach to politics.

“I didn’t get into politics to be a politician,” he shared. “Most of the people who came into my community with a suit and tie was lying … I don’t talk the way that the average politician talks, and I don’t produce content to tell voters what our message is, in the way that [an] average politician does so. Because I don’t think it’s transformative, and I don’t think it works.”

Kathy Hochul, Governor of New York

Many politicians approach their jobs with a no-nonsense approach, and Kathy Hochul has made some waves in favor of New York state’s cannabis program. In August 2021, she was appointed as the state’s first female governor and vowed to launch the cannabis industry that former Governor Andrew Cuomo stalled.

In a press release on September 1, 2021, Hochul confirmed her intention to make cannabis a priority. “One of my top priorities is to finally get New York’s cannabis industry up and running—this has been long overdue, but we’re going to make up for lost time with the Senate confirmation of Tremaine Wright as Chair of the Cannabis Control Board and Christopher Alexander as Executive Director of the Office of Cannabis Management,” she stated. Most recently, she also implemented a Seeding Opportunity Initiative on March 10, which sets a goal for cannabis sales to begin by the end of 2022.

John Fetterman, Pennsylvania Lieutenant Governor

Former Mayor of Braddock, Pennsylvania and current state Lieutenant Governor, John Fetterman has long been advocating for cannabis legalization to help those who have been negatively affected by the War on Drugs. In May 2021, he questioned the country’s ban on the plant.

“This isn’t controversial,” he shared on the topic of legalization. “Canada, the whole country has legalized, and somehow they managed to keep doing pretty darn well … they haven’t descended into anarchy, you know?” In an interview with Forbes in September 2021, he shared that cannabis legalization has “always been the right thing to do.” He’s currently running for Senator of Pennsylvania, the ballot window of which is approaching on May 17, 2022.

Chuck Schumer, Senate Majority Leader

On the congressional level, Chuck Schumer is a familiar name with those following the many attempts to make cannabis federally legal. He introduced a bill for federal decriminalization in June 2018, and federal legalization in May 2019. In April 2021, he was done waiting for President Joe Biden to take a stance on cannabis and was ready to bring a cannabis bill to the senate floor.

“We will move forward,” Schumer said. “[Biden] said he’s studying the issue, so [I] obviously want to give him a little time to study it. I want to make my arguments to him, as many other advocates will. But at some point we’re going to move forward, period.” As of February 4 while attending a press conference, he stated that he will once again focus on introducing another bill to tackle the issue this April.

“In the coming weeks, we’re ramping up our outreach—and we expect to introduce final legislation. Our goal is to do it in April,” Schumer said at the press event. “Then we begin the nationwide push, spearheaded by New York, to get the federal law done. As majority leader, I can set priorities. This is a priority for me.”

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, US House of Representative of New York

The initials “AOC” have been seen in many headlines since Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez assumed her office in January 2019. During this time, she has been a vocal advocate on many issues, including cannabis and psychedelic therapies. In July 2021, she advocated for an amendment to allow the further study of substances such as MDMA, psilocybin and ibogaine as a potential medical treatment for certain conditions.

In December 2021, Ocasio-Cortez and Congressman Dave Joyce introduced the HOPE (Harnessing Opportunities by Pursuing Expungement) Act with the hopes of encouraging states to support cannabis expungement programs. “As we continue to advocate for the decriminalization and legalization of marijuana, this bipartisan bill will provide localities the resources they need to expunge drug charges that continue to hold back Americans, disproportionately people of color, from employment, housing and other opportunity,” she said of the bill.

The post Politicians Supporting Cannabis and Putting ‘Fools’ in Their Place appeared first on High Times.

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New Mexico’s first recreational marijuana stores open with ‘full-on party’ vibe

Cannabis enthusiasts and freedom advocates celebrate the opening of legal weed stores in the Land of Enchantment.

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City of Houston Bans E-Cigarettes, Vaping in Public Spaces

Vaping and the use of electronic cigarettes is now banned in public spaces throughout the city of Houston, after the city council unanimously approved an amendment to its existing ordinance on Wednesday.

According to Houston Public Media, the city’s “existing rules prohibit smoking in an enclosed public space or workplace, within 25 feet of a building entrance or exit, outdoor arenas and public transit stops,” and now “those rules are extended to electronic smoking devices, which include electronic cigarettes and cigars, vapes and any other device that uses vapors or aerosol liquids.”

The change was originally “proposed last year by the Houston Health Department in response to a growing scientific consensus on the dangers of vaping,” according to the Houston Chronicle. Now, they are officially in effect.

The newspaper reported that the approved amendment “adds all types of e-cigarette devices—vape pens, electronic pipes and hookahs, among others—to the smoking ban, which bars cigarettes from enclosed public places and seating areas and within 25 feet of any building.” Those new rules took effect immediately following the vote on Wednesday, according to the Houston Chronicle. They do not apply to hookah bars or other spots where smoking is already legally permitted.

The city council heard testimonials from various individuals who sounded the alarm on the dangers of vaping, which is often billed as a safer alternative to cigarettes despite a paucity of evidence to support the assertion that it is in fact safer.

Houston Public Media reported that during a public comment session before the council on Tuesday, “Dr. Lindy McGee, a pediatrician at Texas Children’s Hospital and assistant professor at Baylor College of Medicine, said she was concerned about the rise in vaping among her patients. She believed electronic cigarette companies are intentionally marketing to teens.”

“Using social media, youth-enticing flavors and highly addictive nicotine, they hooked this new generation on their product,” McGee said, as quoted by the outlet.

The Houston Chronicle said that members of the city council “touted the public health benefit of regulating e-cigarettes, which are filled with a liquid nicotine derived from tobacco that becomes an aerosol when the user inhales.

“Ultra-fine particles emitted by the vapor and toxins from the devices’ heating elements can increase a person’s risk of cardiovascular disease and cancer, federal studies suggest, even when nicotine-free vape liquid is used,” the Chronicle reported.

The use of electronic cigarette devices has exploded in recent years, particularly among young people. Earlier this month, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the Center for Disease Control and Prevention released findings from the 2021 National Youth Tobacco Survey (NYTS).

The survey found that “e-cigarettes were the most commonly used tobacco product” last year among high school and middle school students in the United States.

“E-cigarettes were the most commonly currently used tobacco product, cited by 2.06 million (7.6%) middle and high school students, followed by cigarettes (410,000; 1.5%), cigars (380,000; 1.4%), smokeless tobacco (240,000; 0.9%), hookahs (220,000; 0.8%) and nicotine pouches (200,000; 0.8%),” according to the survey.

Among students who reported using a tobacco product in the last 30 days, 39.4% said they used e-cigarettes compared with 18.9% for cigarettes and 20.7% for cigars.

“Among all students, perceiving ‘no’ or ‘little’ harm from intermittent tobacco product use was highest for e-cigarettes (16.6%) and lowest for cigarettes (9.6%),” according to the survey’s accompanying analysis.

Nearly 58% of those who used e-cigarettes said they first tried it because a friend used a product and that piqued their interest.

The post City of Houston Bans E-Cigarettes, Vaping in Public Spaces appeared first on High Times.

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BREAKING: Biden to Decriminalize Cannabis and Expunge Convictions

In anticipation of today’s scheduled vote on the MORE Act by the U.S. House of Representatives, the Biden Administration just announced that cannabis is now decriminalized, and that all federal cannabis convictions are hereby expunged.

Actually, none of that is true. Sorry! It’s what passes for an April Fools joke here at the Canna Law Blog.

It would be great, though, if the Biden Administration would live up to its campaign promise to “decriminalize the use of cannabis and expunge all prior cannabis use convictions.” Biden and Harris might get around to the related promise to “end all incarceration for drug use alone…” while they are at it. Why not.

It could be that the Administration has been too busy screening staffers for marijuana use, and dismissing incoming candidates for past use of cannabis. The Administration also may have been sidetracked updating employee conduct guidelines to potentially deny security clearance to anyone investing in a cannabis company. Or, it could also be that the President doesn’t actually have the power to unilaterally re- or deschedule marijuana. Biden would have to direct DEA, HHS and FDA to consider that, and he’s been sort of busy. In any case, it’s hard to say!

You can tell I’m getting a bit cynical. It’s great the MORE Act is going to a second vote today. I doubt the Senate will pick it up anytime soon. My guess is that another omnibus bill, the Cannabis Administration and Opportunity Act — which could be introduced in the Senate later this month — would have to be reconciled with the MORE Act if both were to pass. It’s also possible that we’d see contributions from other proposals as well, including the States Reform Act, as a part of the final product.

I have no idea what will happen here to be honest. Neither does anyone else. It’s hard to see around corners and we have been trying to do this for years. Maybe, just maybe, Congress can pull all of this together before the midterms this fall. Probably not though. And if not, the odds may dip once again headed into 2023.

When federal cannabis reform finally does happen, it seems that we won’t have the Executive Branch to thank. For all things cannabis, I dedicate this April Fools day to them.

For more on Biden, Harris and the MORE Act, check out the following:

The post BREAKING: Biden to Decriminalize Cannabis and Expunge Convictions appeared first on Harris Bricken Sliwoski LLP.

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